Cable TV Just Got Boring — So Kill Paid Service With the Best Gear Around

Antenna's Direct C2 ClearStream Photo: Antenna

Kill your cable with these gadgets.

This article was originally published on The Wirecutter, a “list of great technology” curated by Wired alum Brian Lam.

TV just got super boring. Games of Thrones and Mad Men are over and the summer weather means it’s a wonderful time to save some money on digital services — like cable television. Here are some tools you can use to kill your cable with, including a great antenna for free HDTV for city folks and a new best Blu-ray player. (And don’t forget Wirecutter’s guide to streaming media boxes.) Or you could just kill cable and blow the extra money on snow cones, amusement park tickets or a plane ticket to Mexico. Either strategy is Wirecutter approved.

Best Blu-ray Player

It has 3-D support, one of the fastest at disc loading times, produces great high-def images and has support for a lot of media streaming services. Add in the Dolby/DTS support that’s all that most people need for a modern Blu-ray setup.

But before you buy let’s address the big question: Do you even need a blu-ray player? Many of the advertised perks like Netflix streaming and Amazon VOD are available in cheaper dedicated streamers like the Roku 2. Local file streaming from your computer is better on older devices like the Xbox 360 ($199), PS3 ($250) or even the Boxee Box ($179). If you just want quick and dirty access to networked content there’s no point in paying for an optical drive.

So, what do players like the BDT220 really offer? Top-notch picture quality for one. Since the data is coming straight off the disc and not wrestling with network traffic it plays in full 1080P every single time. They also have a huge advantage if you’re interested in playing/converting 3-D content. High-fidelity Dolby/DTS Digital audio is also a big perk for those wanting a 5.1/7.1 home theater experience. Premium disc-based features like director commentary and behind-the-scenes featurettes typically aren’t offered on streaming services, either.

See a theme here?

Blu-ray discs are fundamentally designed to look/sound their best at all times. You can get 1080p picture from Netflix and Vudu too (bandwith permitting), but it’s not the same as having high-def perfection at your fingertips. It sounds trivial but it’s a crucial distinction for anyone who’s sprung for the perfect receiver or a lavish HDTV and want to go the last mile to make it all work. Blu-ray is currently the highest-quality way to deliver movies.

Of course, all this fidelity makes it harder to choose a standout like the BDT220. Most of the major manufacturers are cranking out comparable picture quality and the price range is extremely tight. The $140 ballpark seemed to be the sweet spot for 2012’s players. Go higher and you’re paying for things you don’t need yet like dual HDMI ports. Go cheaper and you potentially lose large(ish) features like 3-D or 24p video-on-demand playback for a mere $10 to $20 in savings. It was an extremely tight race, but the BDT220 ultimately pulled ahead. It just happens to be the fastest optical disc player with most relevant featureset at the best price.

CNet’s Blu-ray guru, Matthew Moskovciak, loves the BDT220. He dubbed it “Editor’s Choice” back in April and says its overall value gives it enough of an edge. “It’s in the sweet spot of Panasonic’s Blu-ray lineup, with built-in Wi-Fi and an excellent set of streaming-media services, including Netflix, Hulu Plus, Amazon Instant, Vudu, MLB.TV, and Pandora,” he raves in the review. “And while competing players from Samsung and Sony offer just as many streaming apps, they’re hamstrung by awkward user interfaces.”

Moskovciak rated the 220 an “Excellent” 4-out-of-5, but also reiterated some of its shortcomings when it comes to streaming. He wasn’t able to play back DivX or Xvid files, or any of his ripped DVDs. “That’s frustrating, but not a dealbreaker in my book, since all Blu-ray players are mediocre local-media streamers at best,” he says. “If you’re a heavy torrenter or digital music streamer, you’re better off with a more specialized device.”

In a brief 5-star review Whathifi praises the Panasonic for its 3-D and DVD upscaling performance. “The Panasonic is impressively stable compared with its rivals, and when coupled with a rich colour palette and good resolution this makes for easy and enjoyable viewing,” says the reviewer. “Those of you with large DVD collections aren’t left out, either: the Panasonic is fantastic when upscaling to 1080p.”

Danny Phillips at Trusted Reviews gave the BDT220 a 9/10 rating, giving the interface high marks. He says, “What’s more, the operating system is fantastic, using a super-intuitive onscreen layout and a remote that’s ironically easier to use than the BDT320’s new touchpad zapper. It’s also a talented picture purveyor with 2D and 3D discs, all of which maintains Panasonic’s position as a formidable force in the Blu-ray market.”

The BDT220 also beat other models in the Panasonic lineup. Cheaper 2-D units like the DMP-BD87 ($104) skip the 220’s full HD upscaling and high-quality 192kHz/24bit audio support. The step up BDT320 ($147) adds a wonky touchpad remote and that ultimately frustrated Trusted Reviews’ Danny Phillips.

Sony’s S590 ($120) and bargain S390 ($112) ran an extremely close second to the 220. They’re both much better at filesharing, but the Panasonic won out due to superior loading speeds, 24p video streaming, and a simpler interface. LG’s flagship BP620 ($140) also has better file support but falls behind the 220 in CNet’s benchmark comparison. Will Greenwald from PC Mag dinged the LG’s video processor for being behind the curve too. Even worse: The whole 2012 LG lineup is missing Amazon Instant. Denon’s ‘low-end’ BDP-1611UD ($350) is great but far too expensive. Yamaha’s BD-S671 ($300) suffers a similar price-related disqualification.

Long story short? After narrowing it down to 24 contenders over 16 hours of research the Panasonic pulled ahead either on overall practical value, a small perk, or price in some cases.

CNet’s Moskovciak also gave us some background on how the BDT220 stacks up against their reference player, an Oppo BDP-93 ($500). In short, the Oppo wins, but the practical differences in picture quality probably won’t matter to the average person. “I’ve been a longtime fan of Oppo since their DVD players,” he says, “but I think the BDP-93 is overkill for the vast majority of buyers and lacks the extensive streaming capabilities that more mainstream players have.” Moskovciak also says the difference in image quality between the Oppo and other players is “incredibly small these days, especially on Blu-rays.”

Sound and Vision editor Michael Berk gave us a similar assessment of the BDT220’s pecking order in relation to the industry all-star BDP-93. “Yeah, it’s $500,” he admits, but he also says it’s the fastest and “best looking picture of anything out there.” Berk also endorses a PS3 for a mid-price option but ultimately says a Sony, Samsung, Panasonic, or LG player “would do you just fine as well.”

The BDT220 has enough advantages to hog this particular spotlight. We don’t expect that to be the case forever, but it’s still a great value today.

Last Year’s Model: Looking for a older model is tricky with Blu-ray players. Not only are they constantly refreshed, but slow firmware updates meant to patch bugs have been a big problem. I’d just get this year’s Panasonic.

Looking Ahead: This current slate of players are most likely the best we’ll see until 2013. Most of these models debuted at CES and were scheduled to hit the market by midyear. Buy with confidence.

Read on for the best HDTV antenna and best media streaming box.

Best HDTV Antenna (For Cities)

Before I get into why, though, a few important caveats and conditionals. First off, as much as we’d like to recommend one, there really is no best antenna. (Just like there’s no such thing as an “HD antenna”.) Antenna design and shopping is basically voodoo.

Why Over-the-Air TV?

Yes, that sounds daunting. But remember, the HD rewards can be sweet. These antennas pick up public stations, without a monthly service fee — think of them as the modern, digital equivalent of rabbit ears. Over-the-air digital reception is usually far superior to that of cable and satellite. The latter providers need to use oodles of data compression to offer those hundreds of channels. That in turn compromises picture quality and can result in a “soft” image, distracting video “artifacts” (distortion), or both. So think of off-air antenna reception as the purest way to watch HD content.

Why Is it Hard to Choose an HDTV Antenna?

Despite those advantages, conclusively picking a great antenna is tricky. Even if we were to generalize based on location or zone (see below), there are simply too many variables at play in this category to provide anything resembling a definitive or useful choice for a broad swath of readers. The C2 I’m recommending here is a good fit for me and others living in the Bay Area and other urban and suburban areas, according to experts, user reviews and my own personal experience. It has advantages and disadvantages like any other antenna, and may not be best for you though. My main goal here is to outline how I came to settle on the C2 and give some good alternative recommendations as well. Your mileage, as they say, may vary.

In reality, buying the right antenna is predicated on a number of highly personal factors. Your geographic region, what stations are available in your area, what stations you actually want to watch, your distance from the broadcasting towers, whether you want an indoor or outdoor antenna, what your house or apartment is made out of, and how many reflective structures (mountains, tall buildings, etc.) are in your immediate area — all of these and more will dictate what antenna works best for you.

Want more bad news? You can’t rely much on specs, either. Ken Nist, a former electrical engineer and creator of HDTVprimer.com has reviewed countless antennas. He even built a site to help nontechnical types with the DTV transition back in ’09. Nist says the majority of antenna marketing is a racket. “The less honest you are, the more antennas you sell,” he says. For example, gain figures published by antenna makers are mostly useless, except maybe for comparing antennas by the same maker, because everyone measures gain differently.

What are HDTV Color Zones and What Range of Antenna Do I Need?

So how does one choose? Hopefully my 20 hours of research will be of use. But it may take a little bit of trial and error too. The good news is there are plenty of sites and resources that make settling on the right antenna — or at least narrowing down the field — a lot less time-consuming.

Each color zone also has an associated antenna type that the CEA recommends too (small, medium, large, directional, omni-directional). For instance, directional antennas are better at picking up far-off signals while multi-directional antenna are better for people who live close to broadcasting towers. That’s oversimplifying a bit, but still mostly true. The catch is directional antennas are highly sensitive to … direction, meaning you may have to fiddle with placement to get a proper signal. This isn’t necessary with omni-directional antennas.

To find out what zone you’re in you can go to AntennaWeb.org and use the tool there. You can also head over to HDTv Antenna Labs and click on the corresponding zone for a list of specific antenna recommendations.

Other resources like HDTv Antenna Labs provide relatively easy ways to hone in on the right antenna. A cool new tool called the TV Antenna GeoSelector lets you plug in your zip and it’ll show you a map with all the TV stations available in your area (both UHF and VHF), their exact distance from you, reception reports filed by OTAers living nearby, and automatic antenna suggestions with direct links.

TVfool.com also gives antenna shoppers a wealth of good information. Its TV Signal Locator will analyze your location to determine which broadcast television signals are available in your area. It then computes the expected signal strength for every channel “in the air” at your location, including adjustments for transmitter power, terrain obstructions, curvature of the Earth, and other factors that affect signal availability.

As a general rule, most city folk will be in the yellow/green zone, but again, local factors like big buildings blocking your antenna’s line of sight as well as the kinds of materials your home is made of will all affect your actual reception and how many channels you pick up.

If you venture out into the real world, say Best Buy, you’ll also find that many antennas will come with the color zone they work best in. However, it’s important to note here that these CEA color classifications apply only to outdoor TV antennas. Why? Well, partly because they’re better than indoor antennas (even the amplified varieties in most cases), and partly due the factors I mentioned above. Because of their larger surface area (they have more receiving elements), larger antennas will provide you with a stronger signal. They’re also mounted in a higher location and outdoors, meaning you won’t have all the potential interference you get with an indoor antenna. The relative strength of the signal an antenna can deliver to a tuner is known as “gain,” and it is measured in decibels (dB). The higher the dB, the higher the gain. As Nist says, not everyone measures this the same way, so gain can be misleading. Anyway, making anything resembling concrete performance claims about indoor antennas would largely be useless so the CEA doesn’t try.

Why Do You Like the C2 for Most City/Suburban Folks in the Green/Yellow Zone?

But anyway, back to my original recommendation. How did I settle on the 10- by 20-inch C2? Mainly because of its power and locational flexibility. It’s also only $10 more than the average indoor antenna yet vastly superior as I’ll demonstrate below. Oh, that and Nist and a few other electrical engineers happen to love it too. I’m lucky enough to live within a 10- to 30-mile radius of most broadcast stations so all I really need is a small-ish, multi-directional antenna to begin with. That said, there are a few more distant stations to the NW and SW that I could also pick up with a little extra gain, which the C2 has (10.2 dB). All told, users in the Bay Area (where I live) say it’s one of the best antennas you can buy.

Yes, the C2 is a little bigger than many other indoor antennas — especially paper thin models like the Leaf. But at less than 1 foot by 2 feet, the C2 is still smaller than a lot of outdoor models. And you can mount it pretty much anywhere you want and out of sight: on the roof, attached to a wall, on a table, on a stand on the ground. AntennasDirect sells a number of different attachments, mounts, and masts so your options are always open. (FYI: I went ahead ordered one and used a paper towel tube to keep it upright.)

Because I’m in a yellow zone (and because I’m mainly interested in the UHF signals) all I had to do is point this guy out my west-facing window and I was good. I got a total of 21 channels, 17 of which were at full strength (including all the locals). Note that the vast majority of HD programming in the United States is broadcast on UHF bands. About 9 percent of the total digital TV stations in the United States utilize the VHF band. More stations are using VHF, though, so that percentage is growing. In truth, some UHF-only antennas, like the C2, can pick up a few VHF channels, usually 7-13 channel range, depending on your distance from the transmitters and a few other variables. That said, experts like Nist warn not to get a UHF antenna if want VHF channels too.

Plently of other OTA users sing the ClearStream’s praise too. “All I can say is, WOW,” says NYC-based reviewer on Amazon.”I have 100 percent signal strength on nearly all channels, with a consistent 85% – 100% signal quality. It pulls in 24 HD stations (more than the ones I tried before) without moving the antenna at all, and with no extra amplification. I am using it as an internal antenna — it’s just placed by the window,” he says.

One hundred and sixty-three customers on BestBuy.com have given the C2 a total of 4.2 out of 5 stars citing its excellent reception and ease of setup as well. “It took me less than 10 minutes to assemble the antenna, connect [it] with the TV via coax cable, scan for channels (automatic) and VOILA !!!!! Crystal clear 30+ channels with the antenna behind the TV,” says one reviewer, “and our home is about 45 miles away from the towers.”

What few pro reviews there are also find the C2 to be an exceptionally good antenna. Ken Nist went ahead and conducted his own measurements for a number of popular antennas a few years ago. He measured things like raw gain and net gain and found the C2 to be an excellent performer in both areas. First of all, the C2 is small enough to be more than reasonable as an indoor antenna, he says. If you are a renter in a poor-signal location, the ClearStream2 (and a Channel Master 7777 preamplifier) is an excellent choice. To surpass it would take a large 4-bay outdoor antenna, which most renters would not consider reasonable indoors.

“For an indoor antenna, the C2, DB2, and 4220 are your best choices,” Nist says. “The C2 is roughly the same size and performance as the DB2 and since the DB2 was the reigning champion of indoor antennas, and since the C2 is a little better, the C2 is the new champ.”

Ara Derderian and Braden Russell, better known as the HT Guys, also recommend the C2. Both are engineers who formerly worked for the Advanced Digital Systems Group (ADSG) of Sony Pictures Entertainment. In their HDTV magazine review of the C2, they say the antenna did a great job when you consider its size and our location.

“If you live within 40 miles of the transmitters or you have a clean line of site and live within 50 miles of your transmitters, the C2 antenna is a great way to receive free over the air digital television,” they say.

Indeed, while it’s labeled an outdoor antenna on site’s like HDtV Antenna Labs, and not a hybrid (which it actually is), the ClearStream 2 still gets a 4.1 rating. That’s easily the highest rating an indoor antenna receives on the entire site. “Easy to assemble, easy to install, had all the hardware to install on the roof and great performance,” says a recent reviewer. “The map said that I should have 30 channels and I got three extra channels.”

It can get a bit technical but the AVSforum.com can also be a great source for antenna reviews by people who tend to know what they’re talking about. One member, EscapeVelocity, did a massive roundup review of indoor antennas and says that the C2’s “high gain, and compact design offer excellent gain and impedance matching across the whole post 2009 DTV spectrum,” adding that “the Clearstream is vastly superior to the existing compact antennas for receiving DTV signals.”

Smaller, Weaker Antennas That Might Still Work in City “Yellow Zones”

The Mohu Leaf isn't as capable as our main pick, the Clearstream C2, but it is only 9 by 11 inches. If space is a premium, and you live in a Yellow Zone and are close to your towers, you might want to try one. Photo: Mohu

Of course just because the C2 works well for me, doesn’t mean it’ll be a good fit for everyone. Some people want a more compact antenna that’ll blend in better. They won’t be as powerful or have the same range as the ClearStream, but for slightly simpler, dedicated indoor antenna solutions the $40 Terk HDTVa, $47 Winegard SS-3000, and the $35 Mohu Leaf, also come with consistently high recommendations from owners and on the AVS forums. All three are UHF/VHF compatible too.

Again, indoor antennas are always going to be inferior to their outdoor counterparts. Indeed, part of the reason we picked the C2 is its ability to fit in either context. But they’re also typically easier to install and are often a better fit for people living in apartments or rented homes who are unable to install anything permanently. If you live in an urban area that relatively close to broadcasting towers, they should more than do the trick.

PC World’s Edward Albro tested five popular indoor antennas last year and liked the $40 Terk best. “[It] had the strongest signal on more stations than any other antenna I tried, winning on 15 of 28 stations,” he said. “The Terk antenna also had a usable signal on 3 other stations.”

Similarly, Albro says the $47 Winegard SS-3000 did a good job pulling in stations. “While it was a hassle to set up, the amplified SS-3000 drew a decent signal for 16 stations, though it had the best signal for only 2 of those stations,” he says. The Mohu Leaf was his second favorite overall antenna and pulled in the best signal on eight of the 28 stations Albro could receive.

Rick Broida at CNET also raves about the Leaf. “Holy crap, the Leaf works like magic,” he says. “In my aforementioned basement, my TV picked up every local station and tuned them in at nearly full signal strength. Your mileage may vary, of course, but I’m absolutely astonished by how well this thing works.”

I decided to do a little comparative testing and pit the Leaf against the C2 just to see how things would play out. I order both the regular and amplified versions of the Leaf. Then I measured the signal strength of every over-the-air station that each antenna could bring in. Of my 21 stations, the C2 had the best reception (and picture on 17 channels). The Leaf, however, did a more than respectable job. Still while it picked up nearly all of the same channels (16 of them), the signal quality just wasn’t as strong for most of them according to the percentage meter on my HDTV. That’s not to say the HD picture wasn’t more than acceptable, its just that if I were outside of the fringe of the range of the Mohu, the C2 would still deliver a picture.

I didn’t order the Winegard or Terk models. But while they get lower overall ratings on HDtv Antenna Labs (3.9 and a 3.8, respectively), but they should be more than adequate if you want a general purpose, low cost, UHF/VHF antenna and live relatively close to broadcasting towers.

In particular, the SS-3000 seems to be a good choice if you are having trouble picking up reception in your area because of a blocked line of sight to the transmission towers, according to reviewers. Again, it doesn’t have the range of the C2 (only about 20 miles), but it is designed for metropolitan areas where buildings and other tall structures can block and bounce broadcast HDTV signals. It’ll also fit well on top of any large TV, bookcase, or television cabinet.

If you want an antenna that’ll really blend in though, your best choice is the 9- by 11-inch Mohu Leaf. It really is the size of a sheet of paper, and close to the same thickness. And you can even hang it close to a window, or as some users have done, stick it directly to one. I didn’t notice a big different between the amped and unamped versions, so I’d recommend going with the regualar version unless you know you’re going to run into some interference.

At the end of the day, even a good HDTV antenna can be a finicky piece of gear. Happily, good antennas are not expensive at all. And whatever antenna you do buy, it’ll likely be the cheapest component in your HDTV system. Still this piece of equipment will also have the biggest impact on the HD signal reception, and sometimes the difference of $10 to $15 can make a big difference in the antenna world.

We’re not going to recommend a specific outdoor model here, because there are plenty of great ones listed and reviewed on sites like HDTv Antenna Labs. But if you’re having trouble with the indoor or hybrid models mentioned above, experts suggest buying an outdoor model with a higher directivity/gain. And if you’re in a violet or pink zone, consider buying pre-amplifier too. Your total cost still should fall somewhere in the $100 area.

But if you live in or near a city, our pick is the C2. Just make sure you are in a zone that is compatible with the antenna’s range. A little homework goes a long way

Best Media Streaming Box

Roku 2 XS Photo: Roku

By Terrence Russell

For cheap access to many movies and shows, I dig the Roku 2 XS, for $85.

It offers heaps of content and even plays locally stored files from an attached USB drive. The XS can stream video and music (thanks to integrated media server software from Plex) and play games to a limited degree too. But the real draw is the 400+ channels listing, low price, and overall simplicity. The Roku has so many different channels because it allows for third-party video streaming services to make plug-ins to work with the Roku.

CNET editors John Falcone and David Carnoy give it a 4/5 rating and Editor’s Choice, noting its all-around value: “Put another way, even with the increased competition–most notably in the Apple realm–and despite some shortcomings, the simplicity, affordable price, and superior programming selection of the Roku 2 XS make it the go-to choice for buyers looking for a sub-$100 solution for accessing the increasingly attractive panoply of online streaming-media services.”

AnandTech editor Ganesh T. S. likes the XS as a set-top for the everyman: “As long as the prospective customer understands what he is getting (a very good VoD player for subscription services with Angry Birds on the TV, and the promise of more paid games to come), and is comfortable with the price he is paying for it, there should be no issues.”

Hobbyist Rick Lehrbaum at Deviceguru ran his own Roku XS vs. AppleTV vs. Logitech GoogleTV vs. Boxee vs. NetgearTV N200 face-off. The XS won for basic features (4.6/5) and for overall ease: “By far, Roku is what we recommend most to those who have resolved to cut the cable TV umbilical cord, but haven’t figured out how to go about it yet.”

Many reviewers (including those cited above) initially knocked the Roku XS for its limited file-sharing capabilities at the time of launch. Since then, the Roku has effectively added DLNA streaming from a computer or server and file transcoding support via a third-party app from Plex. This doesn’t change the device’s native file compatibility (listed in “Key Specs”), but it does add enough practical file support to make most of the initial complaints a non-issue.

The XS is still far from perfect. It doesn’t support faster 5GHz Wi-Fi, and it’s a little slow at basics like reading USB attached media. Signing up for channels individually is a hassle, and Roku veterans will note the missing optical and component outs from previous devices.

At Wirecutter, we like to recommend the sole product we would get, but more important than being decisive is being honest about the landscape. We took some initial flak for our choice of the Roku, so we rang Adrian Covert (Gizmodo’s set-top beat reporter) and Dan Nosowitz (Popular Science’s streamer reviewer) for additional perspective.

The verdict? The Roku makes sense as a device for the masses. But the endorsement came with caveats (Nosowitz prefers the Boxee in personal use) and both agreed that there are much, much better options for specific tasks. And everyone was pretty much in agreement on the hard truth: There’s currently no such thing as a perfect media streamer. Some are great at delivering content, others at streaming local files, and some can even handle web surfing. For every advantage there’s an equally limiting setback.

This is why we’re also recommending a few other options. The Roku is our best streamer for the masses, but there are better options for specific tasks:

Boxee Box ($175) is great if you want the most features and don’t care about price. It has top-notch file compatibility, a decent library of content partners, web browsing, and even a cool QWERTY remote. It’s knocked in reviews regularly for minor bugs and crashes, but the UI is smooth. Boxee is also the only device in this lineup (save for AppleTV) that supports AirPlay. Its iPad app is fantastic for streaming video to the tablet. Licensing disagreements means no Hulu Plus (for now) but if you’re willing to shell out another $50 for Boxee’s HDTV tuner you can watch OTA TV. These individual features can be found in cheaper devices, but if you must have everything in a single box (and don’t mind the added expense) then Boxee is your box.

Western Digital’s TV Live ($60) is ideal for streaming files across your own network, but it’s lighter on content and overall stability. It’s perfect if you’re mainly wanting to play downloaded video files and is also compatible with Plex and other media server software.

The Xbox 360 ($199), PS3 ($245), connected Blu-ray player, or SmartTV you already own most likely streams Netflix and plays local files too. Fan noise might be a problem with the consoles, but they’re just as capable and offer a lot of the same content. These boxes tend to spin their fans loudly when playing HD video, so there’s that to consider, too.

AppleTV is a no-brainer for heavy iTunes users. The show/movie library isn’t as big as Roku’s, but AirPlay — the streaming protocol that lets Apple gadgets send video and audio to the AppleTV and your big screen — adds a huge value for anyone with an iPad or iPhone. At $99 it’s also one of the cheapest ways to add AirPlay to your home theater setup.

Now’s a good time to mention there are $60 and $70 Roku 2 boxes. They lose full 1080p HD and ethernet and so we think the extra money is worth it. The XS has Angry Birds and a motion controller for that, which is useless, but the Ethernet is nice to have. If you don’t plan on using a Roku 2 with a wired connection, you can get the Roku 2 XD and save $15.

The bottom line: You might need a combination of devices (or upgrade to the pricier Boxee) if you want to cover every single base. None of the current devices on the market truly aces the mix of form+function+content+price+advanced features that make a phenomenal streamer. On the bright side, they’re mostly inexpensive.

But if you don’t need to more than a core set of features, The Roku 2 XS is a great choice with nearly all the streaming services out there, for not a lot of money.

Last Year’s Model: Roku’s XDS is better than the XS in many ways (except that it was discontinued last July). You might have to shell out $100+ if you find one, but it’s worth it. It has the 1080p, HDMI, Ethernet, and USB of the XS and adds component and optical out.

What To Look Forward To: It couldn’t hurt size up LG’s new GoogleTV device(s) coming later this month, but GoogleTV has always been terrible. A forthcoming $99 Xbox (with 2-year Live subscription) might be worth a look too if you were already considering a console.